Glowing wrinkles

A blaze of color: Visitors to the Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park in the Chinese province of Gansu simply don’t know where to look first. The mountainous landscape of sandstone summits 2000 to 3800 meters high was formed over 24 million years. The slopes constantly change their appearance according to weather conditions and the position of the sun, creating the effect of an artist constantly repainting a canvas. Nature’s artwork is particularly beautiful between June and September.

Getting there from Germany

Lufthansa flies daily to Beijing (PEK) from Frankfurt (FRA) and Munich (MUC). Catch an inland flight from Beijing to Lanzhou (LHW), then take the train to Zhangye. From there, it’s a 30-minute bus ride to the park.